Open Burning and Smoke Management

OPEN BURNING and SMOKE MANAGEMENT

Wyoming Air Quality Standards and Regulations (WAQSR) Chapter 10, Smoke Management, was revised and became an effective state rule on April 5, 2005. The revisions are the result of a citizen-petitioned rulemaking and only Section 4, Smoke management requirements of Chapter 10 was modified. WAQSR Chapter 10 is available by clicking on the “Standards and Regulations” link.

The intent of both Section 2 and Section 4 within Chapter 10 is to provide an equitable and workable program for all burners that is simple to implement and is the least burdensome possible. Further, the focus is on the majority of situations, rather than extreme and/or isolated circumstances. Therefore, when each Section is implemented, if a burner is in doubt about a requirement, he/she is encouraged to contact the WDEQ-AQD for clarification.

The purpose of the requirements within Section 2 and Section 4 is not to address safety issues related to fire, as that is the responsibility of other authorities. In addition to complying with the regulatory requirements for air quality, burners must also comply with all local (city and county), state and federal laws, regulations and ordinances relating to burning. Further, burners must comply with any restrictions on burning issued by the city, county or state.

If you have questions on open burning, contact the WDEQ-AQD District Compliance staff. See the WDEQ-AQD Contact Information (in table below) to identify the District Compliance staff responsible for the geographic area in which the open burn is to occur. If you have questions on large scale vegetative burning, contact the Cheyenne WDEQ-AQD staff.

If you have general questions, please contact Kristi Tarantola at 307-777-6126 or ktaran@wyo.gov.

OPEN BURNING

Chapter 10, Section 2, Open burning restrictions addresses restrictions and requirements on specific burning practices such as unlawful open burning; emergency open burning; refuse burning; open burning of trade wastes, for salvage operations, for fire hazards, and for firefighter training; and vegetative material open burning. The regulatory requirements within Section 2 became effective on May 14, 2004. The WDEQ-AQD District Compliance staff will administer Section 2. Section 2 is not applicable to burns for recreational purposes, cooking of food, providing warmth for human beings, branding of animals, and handheld fire extinguisher training.

There are some extra things that may not be regulatory requirements that you can do to help your neighbors breathe more easily when conducting open burning.

Contact neighboring residence(s), workplace(s), or other place(s) where people congregate prior to igniting the open burn.
Do not burn closer than 500 feet on other property to a neighboring residence, workplace, or other place where people congregate to minimize the impacts from smoke.
Conduct burning during the daytime hours between one hour after sunrise and two hours before sunset to minimize the impacts from smoke.
Don't burn if the wind direction would cause smoke to blow toward a neighboring residence, workplace, or other place where people congregate.
Don't burn on very calm or cold days, when there is likely to be an atmospheric inversion that will trap smoke near the ground.
Burn in the morning when the winds are minimal, so smoke will blow away with higher afternoon winds.
Attend and observe the open burn at all times and take corrective action (e.g., notify those nearby that will be impacted by the smoke and/or extinguish the burn) if the observed smoke dispersion and direction change causing the smoke to impact a neighboring residence, workplace, or other place where people congregate.

Guides, forms, instructions and tables have been prepared to aid open burners in complying with the regulatory requirements within Chapter 10, Section 2.

Document Title (last updated)	Formats
WDEQ-AQD Contact Information (7/08)
Emergency Open Burning Guide (6/9/04)
Refuse Burning Guide (7/15/04)
Open Burning Guide (6/9/04) Fire Fighting Training, Fire Hazard, Trade Waste, Salvage Operation
Open Burn Request Form & Instructions (6/9/04)
Fire Fighting Training Supplemental Guide (7/13/04)
Vegetative Material Open Burning Guide (6/9/04)
Open Burn Setback Waiver Form (6/9/04) Vegetative Material

SMOKE MANAGEMENT

Chapter 10, Section 4, Smoke management requirements regulates large scale vegetative burning for the management of air quality emissions and impacts from smoke on public health and visibility. The requirements within Section 4 become effective on January 1, 2005. Section 4 was modified effective April 5, 2005 to exempt certain agricultural burning from some of the inspection, notification, and reporting requirements, and instead requires that those burners will provide vegetative burn data in response to periodic surveys by the Administrator. The Cheyenne WDEQ-AQD staff, in coordination with the District Compliance staff, will administer Section 4.

A companion Smoke Management Program Guidance Document has been developed by the WDEQ-AQD, dated November 2004, to assist burners in the implementation of Chapter 10, Section 4. The Guidance Document is a review and explanation of the regulation’s requirements, as well as a guide to implementation of the regulation, written in plain English. The Guidance Document is structured to include some 90 pages of comprehensive resource material into two major components: a Wyoming Smoke Management Program section and a Forms and Instructions section. All burners are encouraged to read the Guidance Document to enhance their understanding of the protection of air quality through smoke management and then to utilize the document as an ongoing resource. In addition to the entire Guidance Document, portions of the Guidance Document are being provided separately to provide quick reference for users of the Smoke Management Program. Please note that the Guidance Document has not yet been revised to reflect the modifications to Section 4 that became effective April 5, 2005.

Note: All of the following documents have been formatted to be printed in duplex mode (i.e., double sided).

Document Title (last updated)	Formats
WY Smoke Management Program Guidance Document (11/04)
SMP Requirement Summary Table (11/04)
SMP Checklists (11/04)
Determining SMP-I / SMP-II Status (11/04)
WDEQ-AQD Contact Information (7/08)
SMP-I Instructions (11/04)
SMP-I Forms [all forms in one file] (11/04)
SMP-I Notification Form (11/04)
SMP-I Post Burn Reporting Form (11/04)
SMP-I Smoke Dispersion Waiver Form (11/04)
SMP-II Instructions (11/04)
SMP-II Forms [all forms in one file] (11/04)
SMP-II Registration Form (11/04)
SMP-II Notification Form (11/04)
SMP-II Post Burn Reporting Form (11/04)
SMP-II Emission Reduction Technique Waiver Form (11/04)
SMP-II Smoke Dispersion Waiver Form (11/04)
Visual Monitoring Log (11/04)
Photo/Video Log (11/04)
Unplanned Fire Instructions (11/04)
Unplanned Fire Forms [all forms in one file] (11/04)
Unplanned Fire Post Burn Reporting Form (11/04)
Visual Monitoring Log (11/04)
Photo/Video Log (11/04)
Long-Term Planning Instructions (11/04)
Long-Term Planning Form (11/04)

2007 Smoke Management Program Annual Program Evaluation

The WDEQ-AQD is required to conduct an Annual Program Evaluation to assess the adequacy of the design, impact and implementation of Wyoming's Smoke Management Program. The first Evaluation covers the program implementation during calendar years 2005 and 2006. On February 1, 2007, a meeting was conducted to seek feedback on program implementation from WAQSR Chapter 10, Section 4 burners.

To view the agenda for this meeting, click here. To view the PowerPoint presentation shown at the meeting, click here.

Updated Information, Forms & Guidance: The updated WDEQ-AQD Contact Information as well as separate electronic files for each form are posted in the table above. The Guidance for Categorizing Natural vs Anthropogenic Fire Emissions may be helpful in determining the difference between "restoration" and "maintenance" burn projects; for grassland, shrub land and forests; for completing the SMP-I Post Burn Reporting Form and SMP-II Registration Form. Use of this Guidance is optional.